So There
by Omegathyst
Summary: When Songpaw and her mentor are sent to live in RiverClan, she is relieved to escape her abusive mother and harassing fellow apprentices. But what she least expects is to fall in love with an apprentice named Volepaw. Assuming she would never come around, it would be torture to see Volepaw everyday. But could she find love with her? We Could Be Series Midquel #1
1. Welcome to RiverClan

**Allegiances**

 **RiverClan**  
 **Leader: Splotchstar-black and white she-cat with amber eyes**  
 **Deputy: Stonewater-light gray tom with blue eyes**  
 **Medicine Cat: Morningpool-dark gray she-cat with white paws and orange eyes**  
 **Apprentice, Rowanpaw(orange tom with green eyes)**

 **Warriors**  
 **Pikestep-dark brown tom with amber eyes**  
 **Applefrost-stout orange she-cat**  
 **Bumblestream-gray tom with jet black stripes**  
 **Pebblebird-light gray she-cat with white tail**  
 **Dawnwhisper-cream colored she-cat with light stripes**  
 **Flintwhisker-black tom with long ears and many scars**  
 **Perchshine-white she-cat with brown splotches**  
 **Sedgestep-orange tom with brown paws**  
 **Mothleap-white she-cat with green eyes**  
 **Apprentice, Flypaw(white tom with tabby splotches)**  
 **Heroneyes-gray tom with blue eyes**  
 **Darkpuddle-black tom with white chest and paws**  
 **Brambleblaze-stout brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes**  
 **Weaselberry-brown she-cat with green eyes**  
 **Sweetcloud-orange she-cat with white markings**  
 **Apprentice, Volepaw(slim brown she-cat)**  
 **Haytuft-yellow tom with orange stripes and long ears**  
 **Emberstem-black she-cat with orange eyes**  
 **Clovertalon-brown and white tom with one blue eye and one amber eye**  
 **Apprentice, Brownpaw(brown tom with blue eyes)**  
 **Aspendrop-gray tom with white chest fur and blue eyes**  
 **Snailstep-dark brown tom with no tail and one ear**  
 **Nettleburr-long furred gray she-cat with blue eyes**  
 **Apprentice, Spiderpaw(black she-cat with amber eyes)**  
 **Antpad-dark brown she-cat with small paws**  
 **Apprentice, Redpaw(red-orange she-cat with green eyes)**  
 **Stormbright-orange she-cat with grey patches**  
 **Apprentice, Songpaw(beautiful white she-cat with amber eyes)**  
 **Willowtail-furry gray she-cat with green eyes**  
 **Honeybreeze-yellow she-cat with orange stripes**  
 **Jioveheart-orange she-cat with blue eyes**

 **Queens**  
 **Amberfern-tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes(expecting Clovertalon's kits)**  
 **Duskbright-dark brown she-cat with red belly(expecting Darkpuddle's kits)**

 **ThunderClan**  
 **Leader: Tawnystar-tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes**  
 **Deputy: Dewdust-blue gray tom with blue eyes**  
 **Medicine Cats: Adderstorm-skinny dark brown tom**  
 **Apprentice, Yellowlight(sleek orange she-cat)**

 **ShadowClan**  
 **Leader: Shallowstar-long furred black tom with amber eyes**  
 **Deputy: Finchfrost-white tom with brown splotches**  
 **Medicine Cat: Cinderhawk-brown tabby tom with sharp amber eyes**

 **WindClan**  
 **Leader: Ferretstar- cream colored tom with orange eyes**  
 **Deputy: Iceskip-slim white she-cat with green eyes**  
 **Medicine Cats: Sootwhisker-dark gray tom with amber eyes**  
 **Apprentice, Wolfpaw(gray and white she-cat with orange eyes)**

* * *

 **Songpaw's POV**

I saw my mentor say goodbye to her sister also known as my former Clan leader Tawnystar, I looked to my mother Onesplash.

She hisses at me, turning away and walking back into the Nursery taking her unborn kits with her. It was no surprise, yet my heart still felt like it was being torn in half. Ever since ThunderClan found out my secret, no one wanted me. And no one was certainly going to wish me well when I left either.

"Let's get a move on now." Splotchstar growled. She would be my new leader, and surprisingly enough she sounded even more fierce than Tawnystar.

I kept wondering if this Clan would be worse, if there was another she-cat that would show more hatred then Tawnystar and Onesplash. If there was a tom as perverted as Scorchpaw, oh I had desperately hoped not.

I noticed the apprentices of RiverClan as me and my mentor were behind them. There were three of them that seemed proud, especially the orange she-cat that was in the middle. But the rest of the apprentices seemed to tread with a regretful step.

The next day Splotchstar announced two queens expecting kits, and I saw two apprentices appeared shocked. The white tom with black patches stammered and a brown she-cat put her paw over his mouth.

She looked fierce, no doubt about it. But it painfully reminded me about the crush I had on another she-cat named Echopaw. When ThunderClan found out...oh it was so horrible I didn't want to remember. Echopaw was the most mean to me of all after that, so unforgiving...

The brown she-cat looked like my next mistake, so my initial plan was to stay far away from her. But I ended up being right beside them, as they seemed like a very interesting group of apprentices.

"And one more thing, since Amberfern has moved into the Nursery, Jioveheart will be leading the Queen-Napping Patrol to Twolegplace instead. And Stormbright and Songpaw will be joining us." Splotchstar announced. "Pebblebird, Emberstem. Come see me in my den. Clan dismissed."

"Queen-Napping Patrol...?" I stammered. "That doesn't sound good!"

"It's not." the white tom growled. "Our Clan kidnaps expecting queens and she-cats from Twolegplace whenever the Clan number is low."

To save time I would learn the white tom as Flypaw, the brown she-cat I was worried of falling for as Volepaw, and the two other apprentices as siblings Redpaw and Brownpaw.

I was nervous being chosen to help with the Nursery nests with Volepaw and Redpaw, but the latter comforted me about being here. Despite that, I noticed Volepaw glare at Amberfern who was looking on sadly.

 _Next mistake_ I would tell myself. _She could only be my next mistake_

However talking to her seemed inevitable as after the work was done, Redpaw brought us half a fish and split it into thirds with her claws before passing the pieces to us.

The reek of the piece of fish was almost overwhelming, how could RiverClan eat this? The bad smell made me miss the delicious voles back at home.

"Hey...Songpaw right?" Volepaw meowed. I felt my fur shudder, this was the first time she was talking to me. "It smells weird, but taste it. It's not that bad."

I wanted to do whatever she wanted, and if eating fish was one of them, then I would inhale the whole lake of fish if I could. I looked at her and tore a piece of fish and began chewing and was pleasantly surprised that it tasted pretty good.

"This...this actually _taste_ good." I purred.

"See? I figured you would like it." Volepaw meowed. "Soon, you'll learn how to catch them in the water. Hopefully you'll be a good swimmer."

I nodded, not quite looking forward to getting wet. But RiverClan was my new home, and I definitely didn't want to go back to ThunderClan.

As night was approaching, I went to the apprentice's den and saw Redpaw and Flypaw sleeping together while her brother Brownpaw was close by. And sleeping just a little distance from them was Volepaw.

Looking irresistible, I couldn't help but walk towards her. She looked peaceful, and it made my heart flutter. Then I realized what I was thinking and walked over regretfully to sleep with the other apprentices.

 _"Oh StarClan."_ I winced, not wanting to get close to her. After all, I was already falling. _Hard._


	2. Patrol to Twolegplace

Pikestep.

I couldn't give a flying fish why he was the apple of Volepaw's eye. I just knew he was and I hated it with every fiber of my being.

We would be heading out to the Queen-Napping Patrol soon, but Redpaw had told me amusingly that Volepaw has a crush on him and not to tell anyone else. I know Redpaw wasn't trying to upset me, but I was _fuming._

Why was I this upset? It's not like I'm _into_ her right? It's only been one sunrise for StarClan's sake.

"Hey, moth-ball!" I heard Willowtail growl. "Didn't you hear Jioveheart? It's time for us to go on the Queen-Napping Patrol!"

Knowing I had to go on the same patrol with the she-cat that magically seems to take over most of my thoughts made me irritated. But it made my heart race...but I was still irritated.

A grim vibe came over our patrol as we apprentices knew the wrong that this patrol was going to commit. Kidnapping queens and kits.

"We will split into three groups." Jioveheart explained. "Willowtail will take Brownpaw and Flypaw, Honeybreeze will take Volepaw and Songpaw, and I'll take Redpaw."

I looked away from Volepaw as the three of us walked down a Thunderpath feeling a burning sensation as I heard that we were partnered together. Why would I care?

"Can't wait to hunt down kittypets!" Volepaw growled with a satisfied smirk.

"We're not killing _all o_ f them y'know." Honeybreeze rolled her eyes. Does that mean we have to kill some of them?!

"I'm not hurting any of them!" I blurted out. Honeybreeze glared at me while Volepaw froze and looked worried.

"You will if I say so!" Honeybreeze hissed, she lunged forward as if to claw my ears. But Volepaw stood in front of me and puffed her chest.

"Leave her alone will you?" Volepaw snapped. Her angry voice defending me practically made my heart melt and my legs shake. This felt like nothing I felt in ThunderClan, but why?

"You two listen to me, OK?" Honeybreeze ordered with a little less of her confidence. "I'm your superior, so you listen to what I say!"

Personally it sounded like she was trying to convince herself that but when it came to picking and choosing my battles, I chose none. So I didn't say anything else.

I saw kittypets run to their nests like they knew this was going to happen. Honeybreeze waved her tail as a signal and ran after the kittypets, with me and Volepaw following her.

"Get the slowest she-cat over there!" Honeybreeze yowled, I knew she was referring to the black and white one that seemed slower than the others.

Me and Volepaw ran towards the she-cat while Honeybreeze went after a she-cat with her four kits. We were closing in on her till a sleek brown and white she-cat leaped in front of us.

"Whitney!" The black and white she-cat yowled terrified.

"Stay back Sheila! I'm not losing my mate to these wild cats!" The brown and white cat unsheathed her claws and leaped at Volepaw.

"Songpaw! Take her down!" Volepaw hissed as she attempted to push Whitney off. "Why are you hesitating?! Do it!"

"Because that's her mate!" I gasped. They were just like me, but they were happy with each other...I couldn't do that. I was snapped out of my thinking when I heard Volepaw hiss in pain.

I ran to Volepaw and pushed the kittypet off of her. Whitney and Sheila both took off leaving me and a very ruffled Volepaw looking at me with annoyed amber eyes.

"What gives?" Volepaw panted. "Those two she-cats could've gave kits to the Clan-"

 _"No_ _they_ _couldn't!_ Those two were mates Volepaw!" I snapped. "You wouldn't understand! You're not like us!"

"...us?"

 _Oh no._

"How are you similar to that pair of kittypets?" Volepaw asked, walking closer to me. My heart began to race till I heard Honeybreeze yell for us. She couldn't of picked a better moment.

"Honeybreeze needs us!" I gasped. "Um, we need to go!"

"Fine, but you'll answer my question later." Volepaw huffed before the two of us took off onto a different Thunderpath where a ragged tabby she-cat and Honeybreeze were fighting.

"We need more cats!" I gasped. "I'll go get help!"

I gave Volepaw no time to answer as I ran to the bushes where I knew Spiderpaw would be and ended up seeing Redpaw as well.

"Redpaw! There's a she-cat protecting her kits and we need your help catching her!"

Redpaw's eyes widened as she looked at me and then at Spiderpaw. Then I saw the kittypets that looked horrified and I suddenly got an idea.

"Go Spiderpaw!" I meowed. "I'll watch the kittypets!"

Suspecting nothing, Redpaw and Spiderpaw took off in the direction and I looked to the surviving kittypets: a orange she-cat named Faith, a dark grey tom named Ollie, a black she-cat named Misha, and a small grey kit.

"Go!" I snapped at them. "I'm not like them! I'm letting all of you escape!"

Ollie's eyes widened with disbelief but picked up the kit in his mouth and took off with Faith following him. But Misha stayed still.

"Didn't you hear me? They're horrible cats and you should go!" I winced as I thought: _not all of them_ _are_ _horrible._

"I'm tired of my kittypet life!" Misha admitted. "Being taken by wild cats is the best thing that's ever happened to me! Don't you see?"

I didn't respond as I saw the rest of the Queen-Napping Patrol run back shocked and angry.

"SPIDERPAW!" Jioveheart boomed. "Why did you leave the kittypets with Songpaw?!"

"She told me too!" Spiderpaw protested.

"Likely story!" Willowtail growled.

"Hey! She made a mistake, calm down!" Brownpaw retorted. "We still have two she-cats and two she-kits!"

"But I wanted twenty-"

"Twenty isn't a realistic number." Volepaw growled.

"Spiderpaw, you'll be in charge of elder den cleaning duties for a moon-"

"Don't punish her Honeybreeze, I was the one who couldn't keep them from escaping." I whispered, earning a suspicious look from Volepaw.

"Don't punish anyone!" Redpaw snapped. "We still have kittypets! Let's just head back!"

"Fine!" Jioveheart snarled. "The sun is falling anyways, let's go back."

As our whole patrol headed back to camp, I gasped when I felt Volepaw brush against me.

"They didn't just escape on their own...did they?" Volepaw whispered rhetorically.

"No." I admitted embarrassingly. "Are you going to tell Jioveheart?"

"No, she deserves to take the fall because she's out of her mind." Volepaw was shocked to hear me cackle with laughter. "How was that funny?"

"Because it's true!" I snickered. "Sorry, I needed that. These past two sunrises have been pretty rough, I'm in a new Clan after all."

"RiverClan is only awful because Splotchstar is our leader. If Stonewater were leader it'd be a lot friendlier." Volepaw agreed. "Oh, before I forget...what was that about with the kittypets?"

I felt my body turn cold surprised that she even _remembered!_ But how long could I go without telling her? My feelings were very complicated, but for some reason I chose to tell her.

"I like she-cats." I told her quietly as I could. "As my future mate."

"Just any she-cat?" Volepaw asked confused.

"Obviously a she-cat that's...'the one,' you know?" I explained. Volepaw nodded with no judgement in her gaze and my heart raced knowing that now she _knew._

That night I saw Pikestep proudly lead a hunting patrol back with several more warriors and Volepaw immediately ran to his side and started kissing up to him on what a great catch he made.

I had just desperately hoped that she'd move on from him like Redpaw did from Darkpuddle. But why did I want her to?


	3. Not Meant to Be

**One moon later, Volepaw's POV**

I was deep in the waters of our territory's river looking for fish, forcing myself to swim as steadily as possible, even though all I wanted to do was zip through the entire river. But my mentor told me that doing such would scare off all the fish... _sigh._

At least my hunting skills were improving each patrol, every now and then I'd catch a bigger fish and my best friend Songpaw would be there to cheer me on. Not saying that Redpaw isn't my best friend, but she's been too busy making goo-goo eyes at my brother now ever since the Queen-Napping Patrol. Well unlike her, I'm actually going to try to make a move on the tom I like: Pikestep.

Sure he's old, but he's also never had a mate. And even though he was kit-napped by RiverClan a long time ago from Twolegplace by a Queen-Napping Patrol, he seems to enjoy our Clan. He would've left otherwise, right? Anyway, I would be dedicated and loving to Pikestep, not to mention a great mother to his kits. And he's got nothing to lose by being with me because I'm awesome!

I enjoyed the slow swim in the river, lifting my head every now and then for air. Then I saw it, a fish almost my size that could feed all the elders and the...queens. I bitterly remembered that my mother was pregnant with what is probably Stormclaw's kits again. Or maybe even a _rogue's,_ but I refused to believe that it was actually a RiverClan tom this time around. And even if it was, she probably doesn't love him.

But I couldn't focus on that right now, I had a big catch in my sights! I leaped out of the water, sprinting through the grass beside the river to catch up to the fish. The rest of the hunting patrol was farther down the river where I would surprise them with my catch. I finally was in reaching distance of the big fish, and I stopped running.

I turned to face the fish in the water and I leaped with my claws unsheathed, slamming into the fish and into the water as I enjoyed the wild struggle the fish gave under my claws. It would only make my victory feel even greater.

I sank my teeth into the fish despite it's wild thrashing and it went limp in my grip. _Finally!_ I dragged the fish out of the water and used my teeth to drag it through the grass until I saw my patrol.

Sweetcloud looked really proud, Darkpuddle and Nettleburr looked indifferent, and Spiderpaw leaped excitedly.

 _"_ _There's_ _big_ _fish_ _up the river?!"_ Spiderpaw squealed. "I'm gonna catch one!"

"Spiderpaw, _wait!"_ But my eager friend already took off. Her mentor took off to catch up to her while the rest of us went back to camp. I hoped that Pikestep would be as proud as my mentor was, maybe even prouder.

Redpaw and Flypaw had their heads close when I proudly brought my catch back to camp, and the former looked at me impressed. Brownpaw briefly glanced at my catch before looking for Spiderpaw and Songpaw approached with awe in her soft yellow eyes.

"Wow, awesome catch Volepaw." Songpaw leaned against me and I enjoyed the intimacy with my best friend, but I knew it wouldn't compare to how I will feel seeing Pikestep react.

And lo and behold, there was the older brown tabby tom emerging from the warrior's den. I vaguely felt Songpaw's tail intertwine with mine, and Pikestep looked at me.

He looked away moments later to pick up a piece of fish from the fresh-kill pile, and my heart sunk. I was always there to praise his catches, so why didn't he say anything? I broke away from Songpaw and dared to get closer to my crush.

"Um, Pikestep? Look what I got." I said sheepishly, pushing the big fish towards him. Pikestep glanced in another direction and looked back at me.

"Cool." Pikestep looked back at the piece of fish he was eating and I decided to persist.

"Pikestep, you know I care about-"

"Okay, I can't do this." Pikestep growled, getting up. "Morningpool insisted I let you down gently, but you can't get my hints through your thick skull."

 ** _"W-what?"_** The fish didn't matter anymore, nor all the eyes that were watching the two of us. Instead, the shock and reality of the situation is what was hitting me the hardest. That he didn't even like me as a friend, **_he hated me._**

"Just because I don't have a mate doesn't mean I'd take anybody. _I'm_ _not that desperate."_ Pikestep hissed, then his tone softened. "I think it's best for both of us if you stop flirting with me. _Please_ _."_

I held back a heartbroken sob, knowing that most of the Clan saw me as the fierce she-cat that could never break. Holding back my tears, I stood tall.

"You're _a...fox-heart_ for talking to an apprentice like that, especially one that's been nothing but nice to you." I growled. "Thank StarClan you don't feel the same since I had no idea this is who you really are."

I spat at the ground near his paws and turned around and left camp as slowly as possible, swam across the river, and climbed onto the tree-bridge. The Island would be the perfect place to cry. I was determined to make sure no cat saw me cry.

I jumped off the other side of the tree-bridge and ran past the clearing and into the trees to finally let out a sob...and then another...then I couldn't stop. Tears fell like a waterfall as it hit me that I was so unlovable. My fierce nature wasn't attractive, it was intimidating. At least that's what I thought at the time.

 _"...Volepaw?"_

That shut me up. I stopped my sobbing sounds completely and stayed behind the tree I was leaning against. I was too hysterical to recognize the voice.

I heard the cat walk closer and I wiped my tears knowing that I couldn't run away. I was still wiping them away when I felt a soft body lean against me: _Songpaw._

"You don't have to pretend that you're invincible around me Volepaw." Songpaw whispered. "Any cat would be hurting in this situation."

I leaned on my best friend's shoulder, appreciating her support. The sun was setting and we watched the sun fall beneath the trees and the moon took its place.

"We should probably..." I realized that I actually didn't _want_ to leave. I wanted to stay right here with Songpaw and ignore the pain in my heart. "Could you tell Stonewater that we're spending the night here?"

"Oh! Okay!" Songpaw's ears perked up and she left my side, returning after a while. "He says that it's fine."

I sprawled out on the cool grass and looked at the beautiful moon hanging over the two of us. Songpaw was on her side, letting her paws hang adorably in the air. Amused, I rested my head on her shoulder and knew that I would be just fine.

Oddly enough, the fear of being unloved didn't hurt me anymore that night.

* * *

 **This story will be going on hiatus until Spring 2018 as well as the rest of my ongoing stories. The reason for this is because I am working on my very first original book and I'll need all the time I can get when I'm not juggling college or my job. More info will be revealed on my profile in October.**


	4. Striking Down the Shadows

**Songpaw's POV**

The next sunrise made me growl in frustration, wishing that the moon could hang over me and Volepaw forever. I almost wished that we could stay on this _island_ forever.

I had been awake for some time now, enjoying the feeling of Volepaw's head resting on my shoulder. I didn't want to be the one to wake her up, not when I didn't want this to end.

Who was I kidding? Even if Pikestep doesn't like her, some other tom with good taste will. Less than a moon ago, I finally accepted that I was falling for Volepaw. It was pretty obvious why it took me so long to accept it: the fact like she'll never like me back. She'd never be interested in a she-cat, let alone her best friend.

For that reason, I suddenly _wanted_ to wake her up so I no longer felt tortured by these thoughts, but I didn't move. The sun shined brightly over the entire forest, and Volepaw's eyes blinked open.

"Oh, the night went by pretty quickly." You said it Volepaw. "We should probably head back to camp."

Where that crazy tom Pikestep was. I held back a sigh as I got up and lead the way back to camp, the way back to _reality._

We arrived back at camp and I approached my mentor Stormbright, more than happy to be distracted with something else to do.

"Can we go with the morning hunting patrol?" I asked. Stormbright shook her head.

"They already left. We can go on the next patrol though." Stormbright replied. "Why don't you hang out with your friends? I'd kill to have my friends back in ThunderClan to talk to."

I knew that my mentor was still bitter about being taken away from our former Clan, and I chose to walk away. While joining RiverClan was the best thing to ever happen to me, Stormbright was probably missing her sister and the rest of ThunderClan terribly.

When I turned around, I saw Volepaw with the rest of our friends. I noticed Flypaw avoiding eye contact with his sister, probably because of Volepaw's resentment towards their mother. I didn't have much else to do besides join them, my heart still aching.

"Hi." I squeaked nervously, approaching. "What're we talking about?"

"How much of a hard time the other warriors gave Pikestep for his mean behavior." Spiderpaw snickered. "Splotchstar isn't punishing him, but a lot of cats are insisting that she does."

Volepaw tried to hide her amusement at what Spiderpaw said, and I hoped that meant she was over Pikestep. I saw Sweetcloud and Brambleblaze coming to talk to Volepaw.

"We're going on a border patrol. Stormbright said you wanted to go on the next patrol as well Songpaw." Sweetcloud reminded me. I nodded with defeat, wishing I could tell her that I wanted to go on a patrol to stay _away_ from Volepaw. At least until I can get my feelings together.

No such luck. Stormbright joined us and the five of us took off to mark the borders. Ever since ThunderClan and ShadowClan attacked, Splotchstar increased the border patrols to almost every day, telling us to keep a sharp eye out.

Stormbright seemed _way_ too calm during this. Did she want RiverClan to suffer because they stole her from ThunderClan? That seemed to be the only answer. I broke away from the group to mark a few trees near the WindClan border when I heard faint sounds of laughter.

"That battle wasn't nearly as bloody in my opinion! _No cat died!"_ I heard a young female whine.

"Maybe we could kill an apprentice or two. Or maybe steal some kits... _oh_ , I think I like _that_ idea a lot." A deeper male laughed darkly. _No!_

"Wait, Breezepaw! Slow down, I think the apprentice knows we're here." The male voice said before both cats went silent, causing my heart to beat at a violently fast pace...only to hear a different scream.

 ** _Volepaw's._**

I turned around to save her, only to get knocked over by another cat. I flipped around angrier than ever at the black she-cat smirking at me.

 _"_ _RiverClan_ _is-"_

I didn't let her finish talking as I viciously used one rage-filled blow of my paw to knock her to the ground. I kicked her off my body and let the crazy adrenaline surge through me as I ran faster than I ever thought I could.

My eyes landed on the gray tabby tom and Volepaw locked in a brutal fight with blood and fur all over the forest ground. I slammed into the tom and he yelped before hitting the ground, my claws on his shoulder in an instant. I started losing sense of what was happening, vaguely noticing my paws brutally battering and slashing at the tom's face.

I jabbed my back paw into the tom's side, causing the tom to scream. When I pulled away, the tom's face was drenched in his own pathetic blood. I swear to StarClan, I wasn't a good fighter most of the time. I would cower and I preferred talking and making peace, but when that tom was beating up Volepaw...

The tom scrambled to his paws and ran back to his camp sobbing. I gave a sigh of relief when I saw that stupid she-cat follow him. Volepaw glanced at something behind me before she stared at me with a lot of...emotion? Admiration?

 _"That was amazing."_ I heard another cat gasp. I turned around and saw Sweetcloud and Brambleblaze looking at me in awe. But where was my mentor?

I felt the warmth of Volepaw's paws land on mine, and I turned around to see her beautiful and emotional eyes up close. And as much as I wanted to stare into those eyes forever, the blood dripping down her body was hard to ignore.

"We need to get you to the medicine cat's den." I whispered. Volepaw nodded and got up, her body wobbling before Sweetcloud and Brambleblaze walked on either side of her. We heard a cat running and the two warriors were ready to attack when Stormbright came into view.

"All the borders have been mark..wait, what happened?" Stormbright froze when her eyes landed on the she-cat that I loved. I turned around and glared at my mentor.

"I saved her from ShadowClan apprentices, thanks for coming to my aide." I spat. At least Sweetcloud and Brambleblaze came to help, even if it was too late. But what in the name of StarClan was Stormbright even doing?

We entered the camp where Redpaw and Flypaw were sharing tongues before they turned around and gasped.

"Volepaw, you're hurt!" Redpaw leaped to her friend, but her brother looked away. I knew it was because of their conflict about their mother, but that shouldn't matter right now.

"Songpaw, I think you should become a warrior tonight."

"What?" I turned to Sweetcloud.

"You should become a warrior. I've never seen a young apprentice fight with so much passion for her Clan." Sweetcloud purred.

"Well, um, it wasn't necessarily my Clan that I was fighting for. It was my best friend." I admitted. "And besides, I want to become a warrior with everyone else. And any other time I fight, I fight like a mouse."

"You got all crazy for your best friend? Hah, that's gay." Splotchstar laughed. Oh my great StarClan, I never felt my blood run cold that fast. I prayed that she'd leave it at that, but she walked towards me.

"Listen here, I didn't force you and your mentor to join our Clan just so neither of you could give me kits." Splotchstar growled. "There will be no mating with the same sex on my watch, and I better see both of you expect kits before greenleaf, got it?"

"Splotchstar, if Songpaw doesn't like toms, she shouldn't be forced with one. Remember when you made Crowheart leave? Her entire family left with her and we lost so many warriors." Stonewater explained. "Don't do this to your Clan."

"Fine. I still better see Stormbright with a belly of kits before greenleaf, but you're off the hook for now lesbo." Splotchstar grunted, walking away.

I knew that the real reason Stonewater was defending me was respect to my sexuality, and for that I was extremely grateful. But unfortunately a lot of the warriors were glancing at me weirdly, as if I was a two-headed cat.

"Seriously? You all are so immature." Flypaw growled at the glancing cats. "Songpaw, we don't care if you like toms, she-cats, or foxes. You're still a RiverClan warrior at heart, and that's all that matters."

"Please don't be attracted to foxes though." Brownpaw meowed nervously. "We don't need anyone leading them here."

"Or badgers!" Spiderpaw pretended to gasp.

Redpaw and dear Volepaw both affectionately rubbed me as a sign of acceptance, and I felt my heart soar higher than the clouds in disbelief. Even though I chose not to say anything about my sexuality or my secret feelings of love, I knew that I had true friends with these five cats.

I was weak, and throughout my whole life, I didn't feel like I amounted to anything. But with them by my side, I was bolder than fire. I could accomplish the unthinkable.

And with Volepaw, I could believe in love again.


	5. Nightfall of Star-Crossed Lovers

**Songpaw's POV**

"Nervous? I wish I was becoming a warrior today!"

Spiderpaw leaped around me in excitement, but I was too terrified to respond. I was actually going to become a warrior that was supposed to fight and kill. Back in ThunderClan, the warriors insisted that I become a medicine cat apprentice. They thought that since I wouldn't have a tom's kits and be terrible at fighting, it'd be the perfect role for me. But I wanted to fall in love, I really did. Even if it wasn't with a tom.

Stormbright knew about how scared I was, and she didn't care. Instead, she constantly obsessed about reuniting with her sister and the Clan that I didn't miss.

Spiderpaw joined us in the final assessment to become warriors, and Stormbright explained our final assessment: a three-part assessment involving swimming across the river and back, a two-on-two fight, and catching one rabbit in the outskirts of WindClan thanks to one WindClan tom.

"Who?" Volepaw hissed unexpectedly. "Who was the WindClan tom?"

"Does it matter?" Stormbright sounded suspicious, and Volepaw looked terrified. Did this tom hurt her?

"She _knows_ something!" Volepaw snarled.

"Knows what?" I whispered.

"Stop!" Sweetcloud finally snapped. "Quit accusing Stormbright."

The mentors split us into pairs: Brownpaw and Spiderpaw, Redpaw and Flypaw, and _Volepaw and me._ My heart raced knowing that the mentors personally thought that we were best for each other.

"Try not to get in my way." Volepaw growled, still upset about the tom.

"I wouldn't _dream_ of it." I purred, leaning against her. I scolded myself for being so forward, but then Volepaw calmed down and softly blinked at me.

When we got to the river, it was clear that Stormbright was bitter towards all of us; especially me. I was used to getting the rotten treatment, but why was she being rude towards the rest of us? She taunted Redpaw all the time, and now she was scaring Flypaw and Volepaw about some tom.

I couldn't let that distract me, not when I knew that's exactly what she wanted. When I leaped into the raging river, it knocked me off my paws and sent me spiraling underwater. I blindly kicked and clawed for air when I felt someone lift me up by the scruff.

Volepaw placed my paws back on the ground underwater, still holding onto my scruff. I looked ahead and saw Flypaw and Redpaw doing the same thing and smirked at how clever Volepaw was.

We even beat Brownpaw and Spiderpaw in the race to catch fish in the river. Unfortunately, that also meant that we had to fight Redpaw and Flypaw. I got anxious at the thought of Volepaw and her brother fighting, so I leaped at Flypaw at the first chance.

That didn't work out. As soon as Flypaw violently shook me off his back, he leaped at his sister and I panicked, going limp as Redpaw tackled me. Volepaw saw what I was doing and went completely limp in Flypaw's paws.

"Thanks for helping me avoid confrontation with my brother during our final assessment." Volepaw whispered. "Now we can kick tail with those two softies."

Brownpaw and Spiderpaw ran towards us, expecting to win easily. But once Volepaw leaped at Brownpaw, he shrieked like a little kit and fell over. Spiderpaw tried to pull her off, but I swooped in and swatted my tail over her eyes...what? I hate fighting.

We defeated them in battle easily and took off to the WindClan outskirts.

"Listen, this is the most important part. We need to catch that rabbit before that gray tom gets there, he **_cannot_** see me!" Volepaw and I ran as fast as we could until I saw the tom approaching Redpaw and Flypaw. _"Shit,_ he's already here! We need to hide!"

I crouched behind a line of bushes and Volepaw, Brownpaw, and Spiderpaw joined me.

"What's happe-" Volepaw growled at Spiderpaw and she stopped talking.

"Stay away, _Stormclaw."_ Flypaw snarled. "You're not my father, you're just some _WindClan warrior."_

"I...a she-cat told me that you and your sister were becoming warriors." Stormclaw meowed, his eyes full of softness. "Does Amberfern miss me?"

"Absolutely not!"

Volepaw chose to make herself known by leaping out of the bushes with the three of us following her to confront the tom.

"Don't listen to him, Redpaw! He's a liar!" Volepaw snarled.

"I'm your _father,_ Volepaw." Stormclaw said with what seemed like good intent, but I kept my guard up.

"Amberfern is very happy!" Flypaw hissed.

"It's true!" Spiderpaw jumped to face the tom. "She has Clovertalon and their kits!"

Stormclaw flinched and looked away. He seemed to really love Amberfern and their kits, but Flypaw and Volepaw were determined to destroy the relationship they could have with him beyond repair. They must truly hate him. All of us looked and him waiting for him to say something.

"Just...go and hunt your rabbits. I'll be waiting for you back in RiverClan." Stormclaw muttered, gloomily walking to our camp with his tail treading the dirt.

"You're a WindClan warrior!" Brownpaw growled in protest.

"Just let him go." I whispered. "It's up to him if he wants to subject himself to more pain."

I turned around to see that Volepaw was no longer by my side. Oh no, did I say the wrong thing? Did seeing her father bring back horrible memories that I don't even know about? Screw this final assessment, I went to go looking for her.

"Volepaw?" I called out into the forest. "Are you mad at me?"

I barely heard her say no in the distance, and I followed her scent.

"Just tell me if you want to be alone and I'll go." She said nothing, and I finally found her leaning her head against a tree trunk with her eyes closed.

"I never wanted to see him again." Volepaw groaned. "He ruined my mother's life by knocking her up and destroying her dream of becoming leader of RiverClan. Do you get why I hate that she's had more kits? I know that she's using Clovertalon as a cover-up. For all I know, she could've slept with Stormclaw again or another tom altogether. He acts like he did nothing wrong, as if he didn't break the warrior code and screw my mother over."

"So you care about your mother more than Flypaw does because you want to protect her." It made much more sense now. Volepaw was passionate to a fault, but that's what I absolutely loved about her. "You're going to be one of the fiercest warriors in RiverClan y'know."

"I think you're giving me more credit than I deserve." Volepaw sighed. "I've been hostile with my words within earshot of her. I may care more than I want to, but I'm also angry that she could do such a thing."

"There's plenty of time to think things over Volepaw, you don't have to forgive her just yet." Truthfully, there was nothing that Amberfern needed to be sorry about. Everyone knew that Clovertalon was truly the father of her new litter, but Volepaw didn't need another cat to shoot her down. Not when she so genuinely believed that she was right. Right now, she needed a friend.

"Thank you, everyone else tells me that I'm being ridiculous. I wish I had a normal family, but maybe I will when I meet the right _tom."_

 ** _Ouch._**

"Yeah, we should go back and hunt. And then you get to feel really good about being a warrior." I attempted to encourage her, even though I felt the thorns of her words piercing my heart. "Or you can stay here and I'll try to-"

"No, it's okay. You're right, we should finish the final assessment." Volepaw got up and took off, pursuing a rabbit that was already out in the open. She killed it right away, and we left the moor area to become warriors.

* * *

"Voletooth! Songpool! Redblossom! Flyfur!"

We were warriors now, but the pain that Voletooth unknowingly created in my heart ached. And this time, I couldn't keep it to myself. I needed to talk to my second closest friend: _Redblossom._

I stood close to Redblossom while she was talking to her sister, and when she turned to me, her eyes blinked in surprise.

"Are you alright?" She asked.

"I need to talk to you before the vigil." I whispered, my heart beating fast.

"Oh, well okay." Redblossom said, following me to the dirtplace near the river. "What is it, is it about Stormbright?"

I quickly shook her head. I _wish_ it was about that.

"No, it's...about Voletooth."

"Did she bully you?" Redblossom growled. Why would she think that?!

"No, no!" I gasped. "Quite the opposite...she was really nice to me."

"That's good right?" Redblossom replied.

"I like her." I explained, looking away. Oh dear StarClan, I'm really in for it now.

"We all do, really." Redblossom chuckled. _Ugh._

"No, Redblossom." I sighed. "I've liked her for moons now, she makes me shiver just looking at me...but I'm afraid she still likes Pikestep."

Redblossom immediately realized what I meant and her eyes widened. She shook her head.

"No, Pikestep was really mean to her two moons ago, remember?" She reassured me.

"Sometimes she's still upset about it." I replied, shrugging.

"Well, that's cause he's a jerk." Redblossom muttered. "The vigil will be starting soon, we should head back."

"Um, Redblossom?" I meowed. "Thank you for hearing me out."

"No problem." Redblossom purred as we began heading back. "So what do you like about Voletooth?"

"She's passionate and she's real. Kinda like you, but in more of a fierce way, like she'd fight you if you oppose her. She doesn't let down her guard down easy, so when shes does for you, it...makes you feel really _special."_ My heart felt like it was floating in the clouds. "But even if I didn't have to worry about Pikestep, she's only into toms. I just needed to release some of the pain in my chest."

"Songpool, you shouldn't give up so easily. The cats that she's liked have always been toms, but maybe that's because a she-cat hasn't stolen her heart yet." Redblossom explained. "It's not likely, I won't lie. But I really don't think you should give up yet. No tom is going to love her _like you do."_

Those words felt true in my heart, and I brushed my tail against her back in gratitude for talking to me. Once the camp was in view, I walked towards Voletooth.

"What were you two talking about?" Voletooth asked. Um, does it matter?

"Our future as warriors; she's hoping to get an apprentice soon." I lied. "We were mostly enjoying looking at the river."

"Oh, okay. You know she likes Flyfur right?" Voletooth glanced away. She thought that I had a crush on _Redblossom?_ Should I be clear that I never did or should I tease her a little and see if she gets jealous?

"Um, yeah. I don't like her like that. Our conversation wasn't _that_ private y'know." I sighed, feeling anxious and weak. I was drowning in my feelings for Voletooth, and she was sitting there and watching without even knowing it.

"Oh, sorry. I don't know why I thought that, you two don't talk to each other that much anyway." Voletooth sounded like she was talking to herself at that point. "Um, Songpool? I wanted to thank you for helping me get it together. You're very important to me, more than you probably know. You're the only one I can show my hurt and sorrow to, and I-"

 _"Vigil's starting!_ Get to your places!" For StarClan's sake Splotchstar! Now I'll never know what she was going to say!

"Sorry, I'll talk about it some other time." Voletooth brushed her muzzle against my ear and walked away, leaving me dying to know what she was going to say.


	6. Relationship Challenges Part 1

**Voletooth's POV**

When Splotchstar interrupted me on the night of the warrior ceremony, I was actually grateful. Get this, I was going to tell my best friend that **_I love her._** And when I was sitting in the darkness in complete silence, I realized that it must have been the heat of the moment that almost made me say those things.

About two moons had passed since that night, and everything had undoubtedly spiraled out of the Clan's control: stupid Jioveheart got preggers, Weaselberry killed herself after the fact, Redblossom was given the responsibility of fulfilling the dumb prophecy, and greencough was beginning to plague our Clan. And guess who was affected? Yup, Songpool.

It got even worse when I heard Clovertalon shouting. I ran out of the warrior's den to see Morningpool leading my mother and two of her kits to the elder's den with the rest of the sick cats. My mother, who I never forgave or apologized to. I...couldn't. I didn't know how to feel, not when I was losing the most important cats in my life.

Somehow, I was still able to briefly put my tail on Clovertalon's shoulders as he wept, avoiding the upset gaze of my brother. Then, I quickly took a fish from the fresh-kill pile and tried to get into the elder's den, only for stupid Rowanpelt to block me from entering.

 _"Hey!"_ I growled. "I'm trying to visit Songpool! She needs to eat too!"

"You can't get greencough Voletooth." Rowanpelt told me firmly. "You're one of our best hunters."

"I won't hunt _crap_ for you if you don't let me in there!" I snarled truthfully, unsheathing her claws.

Rowanpelt flinched and bolted the other way. Heh, what a pussy.

I slowly walked inside the den of confined sickness and looked at Songpool. She looked thin and frail, and the sight made me feel...

"H-Here Songpool." I stammered, dropping the fish at her paws. "I'll come back soon okay?"

Songpool gently placed her paw on mine, and it felt as light as a feather. My heart soared, and I left the den and glared at Rowanpelt.

"If she dies, I'll make sure that you'll never see the sun again." I hissed at him. "I'm going to take a nap, and I better not see her get worse when I get back."

I had no idea how I was supposed to sleep knowing that Songpool was fatally sick, but I needed energy to hunt for RiverClan. I sprawled on the floor and thought over my feelings.

I remembered how I felt when she gently placed her paw on mine and frowned. Did I really love Songpool? I thought that maybe we had a really deep friendship at best, and I simply didn't want to lose my best friend.

But my emotions were too intense to deny it anymore. Was it possible that I was never straight? I was so tom-crazy as an apprentice, not realizing that my love was right next to me all along.

What terrible timing to realize my feelings; when all of this messed up stuff was unfolding in RiverClan. But did enough time pass for me to see Songpool and tell her how I feel? No, I should wait until the greencough blows over.

I left to the elder's den and Rowanpelt was sleeping near the entrance. Morningpool was searching for catmint in the territory. I was able to sneak in with no problem.

Songpool looked beautiful when she was curled up in the corner, and I pressed her paw lightly, expecting the same feathery touch that she gave me before.

She didn't.

"Songpool?" I whispered, trying not to wake anyone else, then I stopped caring. _"Songpool!"_

"What's going on in here?" Rowanpelt demanded.

"She's not moving!" I cried. _"You incompetent, mouse-brained, careless excuse_ _for_ _a medicine cat-"_

"She's probably not dead; let me just put my paw over her chest." Rowanpelt nudged me aside and put his paw on Songpool. "Her heartbeat is slow, the truth is-"

"Huh? Did someone need me?" Songpool whispered.

"Oh nevermind. She's fine." Rowanpelt concluded, what was he going to say?!

"I'll be back in a moment Song." I was choking up; my tears were threatening to show.

I hated showing my feelings, but when I left the den, I couldn't fight it anymore. The tears escaped my eyes like waterfalls. I didn't cry in front of Pikestep, Stormclaw, or even my own mother. But somehow, my pain for Songpool was stronger than any of those times.

I stood in front of Redblossom and Flyfur, too choked up to say anything.

"What's wrong?" Redblossom quickly ran to me and petted my shoulder with her tail.

"I thought...Songpool wasn't _waking up_ , and then she did. I thought she was _dead!_ " I whimpered. "I...I'm going to stay there. I don't care if I get greencough-"

"You love her." Redblossom realized.

Was it that obvious?

"Rowanpelt won't be able to stop you. Go to her." Flyfur meowed. It was the only nice thing that my brother said to me in moons, and I wouldn't take it for granted.

I ran back into the elder's den with my strength renewed.

"Voletooth? Is everything alright? I'd go to a private place to talk to you, but I don't really feel like moving." Songpool sighed. I sprawled beside her and rested my head on her shoulder, surprising her. "Voletooth! You're going to get sick."

"I don't care, moments ago I thought you were dead." I confessed. "And I don't want to be with anyone else. I didn't even care about Pikestep nearly as much as I care about you."

"What're you trying to say?" Songpool meowed, lifting her head.

"I love you." I purred, realizing how true it was when I said it. "I want you to be my mate. That is, if you feel the same way."

"Very much so, I just can't believe that you like me back." Songpool whispered. "It hurt, thinking that you'd never like me because I'm a she-cat. But you've made me the happiest sick cat in the world."

"Splotchstar is dead!" I heard a cat shout. I was really glad, now no one could keep us from being together.

 **Songpool's POV**

The next sunrise came, and I felt less sick. I watched with relief as Rowanpelt stocked a lot of catmint. He turned towards me and gave me a few leaves. I was swallowing them when I heard a scream that scared both me and my new mate.

 _"AMBERFERN!"_

Voletooth leaped out of the elder's den and I followed her. We saw that it was Clovertalon, who was crouched over Amberfern's dead body.

"What happened?" Voletooth asked before she saw her mother's dead body. Her eyes widened and her tail dropped.

"I didn't forgive her!"

"And now she's dead." Flyfur snarled at my mate. "Now you get to live with being mad with her till the day she died. _Happy now?"_

"Stop it!" I snapped, truly sick of them judging Voletooth. "Amberfern is in StarClan, she obviously can see us and has already forgiven her daughter! So leave my mate alone!"

Clanmates gasped. Voletooth smirked, but I was still pretty pissed.

"You just wanted to say we were mates didn't you?" Voletooth purred.

"Maybe, but they're still making me mad." I hissed.

"We're back from the Moonpool!"

Stonestar and Morningpool returned, with the former looking at his Clan with determination and love. I didn't doubt that Redblossom's father would be a great leader.

"The next deputy of RiverClan will be Mothleap." Stonestar announced.

"I won't let you down Stonestar." Mothleap purred.

"Stonestar, my mate and our kits are dead." Clovertalon announced. "With the exception of Spottedkit."

"She's weaned, thank StarClan." Clovertalon continued. "But I want a she-cat to take her as their-"

"I'll do it!"

Voletooth blinked in shock at my quick answer, but I only smiled back. Don't get me wrong, I was really worried about my impulse decision. But I always wanted kits, and I was convinced that this was my only chance.

"Me and Voletooth will raise her." Songpool repeated. "Or I will, whichever Voletooth wants."

"I'll help you." Voletooth meowed, nuzzling me. "I'll go hunt for Spottedkit right now."

Voletooth eagerly left the camp and Clovertalon mouthed a _"thanks"_ before crawling into the warrior's den. I followed after her, worried that she was putting on a front. Wouldn't she be kinda pissed that I made such a big decision without talking to her about it?

"Hey Voletooth...you seriously don't have to raise this kit with me if you don't want to. I mean, we _just_ became mates." I told my best friend. "I still can't believe that this is all real, like..."

 _How could you possibly love me back? I'm not the one you wanted, wasn't it Pikestep?_

I kept that to myself, but I couldn't help but be in disbelief over what happened earlier. In my eyes, mutual love didn't exist, at least not for long. I could already picture her walking away for some tom that could truly give her everything that she wanted.

"Songpool, I'm kinda relieved that you invited me to raise my half-sister with you. It feels like a way to make amends with my mother after she died." Voletooth looked into my eyes. "A way to make up for the broken relationship we had. And I'm sorry that you had to watch me chase after Pikestep, but you can certainly believe that I truly love **_all of you._** It isn't just you that feels this way."

I walked towards her and pressed my nose against her's, entwining my tail with her's. I was her's, and she was finally mine. When I got abused by my mother, rejected by Echoleap, and bullied by most of ThunderClan, I thought there would be no end to it. I thought that I'd either die alone a rogue, or I'd die at the paws of some vengeful Clanmate.

But here I was, part of a Clan that loves me for me, and a mate that loves me for me. **_My best friend._**

I was ready to protect my new family from the threat coming, and I never felt happier.


	7. Relationship Challenges Part 2

"I can't wait to have kits." Spidermoon purred. "Knowing that me and Brownpelt are not only mates but best friends, it fills me with such joy that we get to share this together. And you and Flyfur can play with the kits. Just imagine it, you'll be _Aunty_ Redblossom."

Spidermoon gave a teasing grin at Redblossom and she blinked in shock before regaining her composure.

"That...that sounds great Spidermoon." Redblossom replied, walking away quickly. Spidermoon looked at me with confusion.

"She's probably just worried sick about the threat, it could come any day now." I reminded her. Why wasn't _Spidermoon_ worried? I was worried for my mate and adoptive daughter who meant the world to me.

Voletooth was holding a feather in her teeth and playing with Spottedkit nearby, moving away every time Spottedkit tried to take the feather. I felt more relaxed until I saw Flyfur approach his sister, and I feared that he'd be angry at her for living her life happily after their mother died, with her not forgiving Amberfern.

But there was a sad and defeated gaze in his eyes.

"I think Mom would want us to forgive each other." Flyfur admitted. "I miss her so much, but I also miss you. For the sake of the Clan, we should have each other's backs."

"Yeah, you're right. I shouldn't have cut off my relationship with my mother, but that's in the past." Voletooth agreed. "I miss you too."

Flyfur briefly touched his nose to his sister and pulled back, his tail moving from side to side.

"Do you want to walk to the Gathering together? We have a lot to catch up on." Flyfur asked. Voletooth glanced at me and nodded.

"Don't worry, I've got a lot of things to tell Redblossom and Spidermoon too." I purred. "It's great to see you two getting along again."

We all went to the Gathering except Darkpuddle, who got sent back to camp for attempting to rape Redblossom. Stonestar intervened, but we all knew that Redblossom was ready to kick his ass if she needed to.

Redblossom and her father revealed the upcoming threat to all of the Clans, and then we saw the huge flying monster hanging over us. And she had revealed that the threat would kill her, our dear friend...

"I have to go now. Goodbye everybody, I love you all." Redblossom gave a bittersweet purr, and me and Voletooth looked at each other in shock. She was serious, StarClan _actually_ told her that she was going to die saving us. My eyes started watering when I buried my face into Voletooth's shoulder. She didn't cry, but I could feel her shaking.

Flyfur gave a desperate cry and ran onto the tree-bridge, determined to see if Redblossom made it safely to the flying monster. Brownpelt and Spidermoon stared at the whole scene with shock until Stonestar stood in front of us.

"We must hurry and get to the dens where we'll be safe." Stonestar ordered. The four of us followed our leader, and I picked up the pace when I saw the beast falling from the sky.

 _Spottedkit...I'd rather get torn apart by Twolegs than let anything happen to her!_

I picked up Spottedkit mid-run and ran into the Nursery, not letting go of her.

"Momma, what's wrong?" Spottedkit meowed. My heart warmed at the name, but I couldn't let my focus waver. Voletooth stood protective over the Nursery, determined to keep my family and Spidermoon safe.

The explosion shook the entire forest, and Voletooth didn't waver or run away. Her back was turned to me, but I knew that she had a stone-still look of anger and determination. It was one of the most beautiful looks that I've ever seen on her face.

After several moments of worrying silence, Stonestar signaled us to come forward.

"I heard the explosion, so most of you can come with me, but some of you need to stay." Stonestar explained. "Just in case anything happens."

Stonestar lead us past the half-bridge and we continued walking until we found the destroyed monster in the outskirts of our forest territory. Twoleg blood, parts, and the black blood of the monster caked the broken creature that attempted to kill us.

"Um, Stonestar?" The WindClan leader meowed. "...we found Redblossom."

Bathed in the monster's blood was Redblossom, the blood pouring from her mangled body mixed with the monster's blood. Oh StarClan, _this is disgusting..._

I wanted to leave, I really did. But all the Clans seemed settled in for a full vigil for the Crimson Heroine that we missed so much. Voletooth let me use her shoulder to literally cry on again, and I reminded myself that the time of grieving would be over eventually. My daughter would become a warrior, Flyfur would move on with his life, and the Clans would quickly return to everyday life.

But that night of crying and loss felt like never-ending torture. And when the sun finally rose again, Voletooth and I walked back to get some much needed sleep.

 **8 1/2 Moons Later**

"Wish that we could be with Spottedpaw at her second Gathering." I sighed.

"Well, she really wants to experience things without us constantly hovering over her every move." Voletooth pointed out. "At least we got to go to her first Gathering right?"

"Yeah, but I already miss raising kits. Is that weird? I love having kits, but there's no normal way to have them that I know of." I explained.

"It's not weird at all, it's a perfectly reasonable thing to want." Voletooth purred. "StarClan will give us another opportunity, I'm sure of it."

"I'm so glad things have returned to normal." I purred, nuzzling Voletooth's shoulder. "But I sure miss-"

 _"Voletooth! Songpool!"_ We heard Antpad shout. We left the warrior's den, only for me to be tackled by our daughter.

"The Crimson Heroine has returned!" Spottedpaw purred.

"Oakpaw and several apprentices had visions from StarClan to go to the Mountains." Antpad clarified. "Come see it for yourselves."

We walked out of camp and onto the tree-bridge, only to hear growling between two time. Voletooth froze just as we were at the end of the bridge.

 _"It's Stormclaw."_ Voletooth hissed. "I hear him fighting about something."

Instead of turning back, I felt a spark of pride as she leaned forward, waiting for the right time to make her appearance.

"Shut up about my mom, Stormclaw. You're lucky Voletooth isn't here yet to claw you a new one." Flyfur growled.

"You mean that mouse-brain that's 'mate' is another she-cat?" Stormclaw retorted. Voletooth leaped off the tree-bridge, her stance intimidating.

"Yes that's who he means. Except I'm not a mouse-brain and Songpool _is_ my mate." Voletooth corrected him. "We heard Redblossom is...back?"

"She was reborn in the mountains." Oakpaw repeated. "But we must go."

The Clans and families finished their goodbyes to the apprentices leaving to find the reincarnated Crimson Heroine, and Flyfur turned back to his father.

"What is wrong with you? Did you really expect me and Voletooth to want to see you because you mated with our mother?" Flyfur growled. "You seriously need to get over yourself, because Amberfern is never coming back. ** _And we're never going to love you."_**

 _Stormclaw's hurting so much, he's acting like this because his own kits are pushing him away_

"Flyfur..." Suddenly, everyone's eyes were on me, and I froze. I even saw my mother and Echoleap in the crowd, my fear of speaking up skyrocketed. I wasn't even sure if Voletooth wanted me to speak my mind about this.

 _She's not in charge of every little thing you do, and she's made that clear. She loves you, and she won't hate you..._

"I think Amberfern would want you two to stop being angry at Stormclaw. What good is that going to do? He never asked you two to join his Clan, or to even visit him. He loved Amberfern, and he only wanted love from you two." I sighed. "It's too late to change the past, Amberfern already lost the deputy position by having his kits, but I'm sure looking back on it, she wouldn't have wanted it any other way."

"Maybe you're still angry with us, but I just needed to say that." I told Stormclaw. "I'm sorry things with Amberfern didn't end the way you wanted them to, but it's not too late to mend your relationship with your kits."

Stormclaw looked at me in shock, and then he shook his head.

"I was wrong to judge you, you're a kind she-cat." Stormclaw sighed. "But those two are **_dead_** to me. They wouldn't stop pushing me away, and all I did was try to love them. Is that against the code? Wanting the best for my kits? Amberfern was even worse, cutting me off after I 'ruined her chances of being deputy.' How was I supposed to fucking know that she'd get knocked up? I was a reckless young tom that was _in love._ I didn't even think of that. And then she pretended that I didn't exist, and took that Clovertalon cat as a mate."

"I was full of love, and they spat in my face." Stormclaw pressed his shoulder into his new mate's shoulder. "Now I got a family in WindClan to be proud of, and to truly love. I don't need their love anymore."

"I didn't expect anymore from you Stormclaw, and _you_ shouldn't have either." Flyfur muttered to me. "I'm leaving."

Stonestar signaled for the rest of RiverClan to follow, and Voletooth joined my side.

"You're so brave for speaking up, but I think it was too late to save any relationship with him." Voletooth explained. "How terrible am I? I ruined my relationship with _both_ of my parents. And here you are, trying to fix things. What did I do to deserve you?"

"You're not terrible, I just didn't want you and Flyfur to hate your father. But it's his own choice to push you two away, no matter how angry you were at him." I told her. "Are you still angry with him?"

"No, it's like you said. I realized that my Mom wouldn't have wanted it any differently. But that doesn't mean I love him. Sorry, but that's my honest answer." Voletooth admitted.

"It's a big improvement from how you felt as an apprentice." I reassured her. "I'm proud of you, I really am."

"Are you kidding? We should be proud of _you!"_ Voletooth purred. "You hardly spoke when you first joined RiverClan, and now you just spoke up in front of all of the Clans! And there's still time for Stormclaw to change his mind. And if he doesn't, I still have all of you."

I pressed my nose against her nose and felt mature, happy, and much stronger with RiverClan. Stronger than I could ever feel in ThunderClan. It was practically fate that stole me away to my current Clan.

And when Redblossom came back, RiverClan was complete once more.


	8. Epilogue: Powerful Love

**_Many season cycles later  
_ _Songpool's POV_**

I sat in the elder's den after so many moons, sitting with Redblossom and Flyfur. My second litter of kits adopted from Gigi, Thornspring and Softheart, had kits that had even more kits. It was wonderful to play with my grandkits and then my great grandkits, and I enjoyed playing with kits in general.

Spidermoon died in a fight with rogues, and Brownpelt died from greencough the following leaf-bare. But Flyfur and his dear Crimson Heroine got to live a full life to this day. They also got to see their kits have kits and so on.

Owlstar became leader after Stonestar died, and we got the honor to see her grow up into the mature leader that we admired today.

Voletooth refused to become an elder, she was hunting and fighting for her Clan until the very end. I didn't stop her, even though it broke my heart to hear that she collapsed when she was chasing WindClan apprentices out of our territory, losing her breath. She died that day, and I've been alone for 20 moons now without her. But I wasn't mad at her for that choice. She died the way she wanted to, defending our Clan.

And when I curled up in the den to go to sleep, I knew that I wasn't going to wake up again. I knew from the struggle from each breath and movement. I was looking forward to seeing my mate again, and our friends. I smiled at Redblossom and Flyfur, and then closed my eyes.

I felt myself leaving, floating through the sky until I was in a meadow with a starry night sky. It was surrounded by trees, and fireflies flew gently in the air around me.

 _"Holy shit,_ this is beautiful." I whispered in awe. "Is anybody here?"

"No." Voletooth laughed, the stars shining in her pelt. "Just kidding, there's plenty of cats that'd love to see you. But they thought it'd be best if I made sure you're alright first. Because you, well, died."

"Since when did you gain a sense of humor?" I teased.

"I've met a lot of new cats." Voletooth smirked. "Turns out, there's a lot more Clans besides the main four near the lake. There's AngelClan, StormClan, DragonClan, and tons more!"

"Wow, and StarClan watches over all of them?" I asked. My mate nodded.

"I can introduce you to all of them if you want, we have infinite time." Voletooth purred.

"That sounds awesome!" I decided.

"Oh I've missed you so much." Voletooth sighed contently. "Brownpelt! Spidermoon! You two can come out now."

Unsurprisingly, Spidermoon ran into view and knocked me over before I could speak. I could hear Brownpelt laughing, and I was happy to see them again. Redblossom and Flyfur would be here soon, and the six of us would finally hang out again.

 _Together, forever._


End file.
